In and outs of the political campaigns, focusing on Michigan and Lansing, Tim Skubick will report regularly throughout the primary and then general election campaigns.

Monday, March 3, 2008

McMillan Thanks Brooks

McMillan Thanks Brooks

Stop the presses.Glory be.Archconservative Tom McMillan of Oakland County has sent a thank you note to county executive L. Brooks Patterson.

This is the same McMillan whom Brooks has lambasted for being anti-gay, anti-big tent GOP and anti-anti.Yet McMillan sends a note of appreciate for all Patterson is doing to revamp the Cobo Hall expansion project more to the liking of Oakland County residents. What is this world coming to?

Patterson has been one of the major stumbling blocks to piecing this deal together, but the popular wisdom is, once Patterson is safely reelected in November, he can then make his deal with the other players.Until then, just to be safe, the theory goes, Patterson won't play footsie with anyone.

McMillan scoffs at that notion.

He also scoffs at the notion that ultra-conservatives will somehow abandon John McCain when he finally nails down the GOP nomination for president.

That's been the chatter out there on the far right fringes of the Republican Party.

Actually McMillan thinks with the hard right being hard on McCain, it may actually help him with moderate voters, who figure, if conservatives don't like McCain, he must be O.K.

While McMillan remains hooked up with the Huck a.k.a. Mike Hucbabee, he can read the handwriting on the nomination wall and adds, "We'll end up" in the McCain camp.

There is one caveat however:"Barring any proclamation that really alienates us, and this is a real possibility," we'll be with McCain.

Knowing McCain's penchant for saying what he thinks, McMillan will be listening very carefully.

About Me

Skubick has 38 years of covering Michigan government and politics, making him the longest serving member of the state capitol press corps. He anchors the weekly public TV series "Off the Record" and covers the capitol for WJBK-TV2 and WWJ NewsRadio 950 in Detroit. In addition to this blog, he writes a weekly political column for 24 statewide newspapers, including the Oakland Press, and he has written two books on Michigan politics. He holds the BA and MA degrees from Michigan State University and was recently awarded four Emmy's for his Public TV work.